Foes Bear Arms
by ASoldiersLamb
Summary: Percy and Annabeth have finally graduated and are heading back to camp as Senior trainers. However, their welcome home is not so welcoming, and it seems like Rachel's prophecy is beginning. cannon pairings. REWRITING CHAPTERS!
1. We get the Thieves' Welcoming Committee

A/N: Kind of decided to re-write chapters one and two into one longer chapter. I've started writing longer chapters for other things and realized that this chapter was waayyy to short. I also read that despite a common confusion, Travis is actually Connor's older bro, but that would've ruined a huge plot line in this, so pardon the twin aspect. Changing it would ruin the story. Enjoy!

"Bye guys. Have fun this year." My mom said as she hugged us outside the bus station.

"We will mom, promise." I said as she hugged Annabeth. Annabeth smiled as she pulled away and also reassured my mother that we would enjoy our last year at camp.

"The rebuilding is finished, right? It's not like you guys will be working the whole time again?" She pried.

"Yes, mom!" I sighed, kissing her on the cheek then turning towards the bus with Annabeth. We got on the bus, my mother's goodbyes following us. We sat down in two empty seats and Annabeth leaned against me and opened her laptop from Daedalus. Her gold hair fanned out on my shoulder and I put my arm securely around her when I saw the way the man in the seat across the aisle from us looked at her. I guess she noticed because she looked over her shoulder at me and rolled her eyes as though to tell me I was being stupid… which tended to happen all the time with us. What can I say; I'm just a jealous guy.

We finally got off the bus as dusk approached. As soon as we stepped off, Annabeth raked her blond curls into a ponytail and grumbled about how humid it was in New York. I, of course, loved it. Sure it was hot, but I could feel all the water in the air and, as a son of Poseidon, you really can't blame me for loving the sensations.

The sun was half way past the horizon before Thalia's tree came into view. I felt sweat run down the crook in my spine and made me tremble as it hit the one vulnerable spot on my body. Annabeth laughed and made as if to poke the base of my spine. I laughed and turned, grabbing her arm before she made contact. The misgevious glint in her stormy gray eyes was enough to drive me insane. I stole a sugar sweet kiss (she had eaten some of the sour candy from my mom's shop on the bus ride over) and I felt a groan come up as I realized that the gasp she uttered was not my doing, but because she had noticed what was wrong with Thalia's tree. Peleus wasn't snuggled around the base of the trunk as usual. I felt my heart sink into my stomach as I searched my pockets for an all too familiar ball point pen. I uncapped it and cautiously moved forward, using my left arm to hold Annabeth behind me.

"Percy!" Annabeth hissed at me and grabbed my free arm in an attempt to hold me back. I kept moving forward, Annabeth at my heels, until I was hit by something and the three of us rolled down the hill. As we slowed to the bottom I threw Annabeth behind me and held down the other person, Riptide at his throat.

"Connor?" I was shocked to see the teenage son of Hermes with a hand blade at my throat.

"Percy?" he said in a relieved shock, "Gods, I was this close to killing you! Sorry Bro." We both go to our feet and put away our weapons as the sun faded to almost complete darkness. We trudged back up the hill, Annabeth brushing grass off my back.

"Where is Peleus?" she asked. Connor shrugged.

"Sick, I guess. Dunno if he ate something funny or what, but us cabin leaders are taking turns guarding the tree and camp until he gets better." I couldn't read the look on Annabeth's face because of the deepening darkness around us.

"I seriously hope he gets better soon. I'm tired of missing dinner for guard duty. Which reminds me; Travis and I finished our shift at sunset so you two should come down with us and get some eats. We just have to chill here til the Apollo kids get here." Connor offered as he leaned back against the tree. I shrugged at Annabeth and we settled into the grass, sending a flurry of fireflies up around the three of us. Jordan, a daughter of Apollo, laughed as she trudged up the back side of the hill from camp, fireflies dancing around her and her brother.

"'Bout time you two got here," Connor said to the pair, "Sunset means when the sun sets, not five minutes later! I'm freakin' starving. Oh well." He shrugged in our direction and Annabeth rolled her eyes.

"Poets." She scoffed, and then grinned sarcastically at the two new arrivals. I put my arm around Annabeth, my stomach making audible sounds now.

"Well, let's get some grub. I could go for a whole pizza on my own at this point." Annabeth elbowed me playfully.

"Sure, sure," Connor responded as he turned towards the woods, "Just have to get Travis." He stuck his fingers in his mouth and whistled high and keening. The fireflies settled into the grass as we waited. Nothing.

"Travis!" Connor yelled, his hands cupped around his mouth. After another lack of response, I got a tight feeling of dread in my stomach and I started noticing every sound around us. Typical hero syndrome, I could tell Annabeth was going through the same thing. Connor pushed his arm bands down to his wrists and they morphed into a pair of celestial bronze daggers. The ghostly surreal light they emanated made his sandy blond hair look salt white against the dark forest. As he began to move into the dense brush, I drew Riptide and followed. I was suddenly aware of how very unprotected my lower back was.

We had barely made a dent in the trees before the snapping of twigs stopped us in our tracks. Connor and I stood back to back, guarding each other's back as we waited.

"Which direction?" I asked Connor in a whisper.

"No need, it's coming for us, bro." Connor mumbled, and I could hear the muted sound of his fingers rolling along the hilts of his weapons. Connor and Travis were almost famous at camp for being the most hyperactive heroes. It was like they had worse ADHD than the rest of us! I say almost famous because they are really far more infamous for the trouble they've caused since day one.

A figure appeared to my right, just out of the moonlight. For a moment, I thought it was some grotesque monster. The ice didn't hit my veins until I noticed that it was a human figure… holding a body. Before Connor and I could jump into action, the figure tossed the body at our feet and turned to leave. As he did so, I thought I heard him say something, but I couldn't understand it. I did, however, catch a glimpse of what looked like a stygian iron blade dripping blood. I stared after the man in shock as Connor sank to his knees beside me.

"Travis." Connor breathed his brother's name before jumping to his feet and running after the assailant. His daggers flared perniciously as he ran. I ran after him. I knew, somehow, that the man he chased was gone, but I had to stop him before he got lost. And we had to get Travis to the big house before he died if he wasn't, gods forbid, already on his way to the underworld. I finally caught up to him and restrained him until he quit struggling.

"Connor, he's gone. Right now, Travis is the one that needs your attention. Maybe we can get him help if we hurry."

"It's too late," Connor mumbled, "He's gone. He was gone by the time we got him."

"You don't know that for sure." I felt oddly like Annabeth as the words escaped my mouth. Connor got to his feet and his hazel eyes shot at me. Talk about if looks could kill.

"Percy, you just don't get it! Twins are different than anyone else in the world! Especially Godling twins! I can feel it, Percy! Part of me is dead, and so is Travis!" His daggers receded back to the bands around his upper arms and he dragged his fingers agitatedly through his hair.

"Percy! Connor!" Annabeth's voice rang through the woods and not a moment later, the blond came bounding into the clearing, her knife in hand. There was a mortified and confused look on her face.

"Thank the Gods you two are okay. You want to explain why Travis is unconscious in the dirt back there?" She had hysterics in her voice that I'd only heard once or twice in my life. And not since the Titan war two years back. Connor laughed humorlessly.

"Unconscious, if only." Annabeth's face fell into devastation.

"Oh gods…" she whispered as she covered her mouth.

"We need to get him down to the big house somehow without alarming all of the campers. The last thing we need is new heroes freaking out about this on the first night. Nobody will sleep for days." I said, the hero side of me kicking into full gear. Finish things professionally, grieve later.

We ran to where Travis lay and picked him up gingerly. Annabeth helped carry him by the feet, unable to look at him. She stared at me the whole time. Surprisingly, Connor didn't take his eyes off his brother, though I thought he would've reacted much like Annabeth in that situation. I carried Travis' head, walking backwards through the woods, while Connor cradled his torso. He had blood half way up his fore arms.

Jordan let out a yelp as we emerged from the tree line. Will quickly ran over to us, mild shock on his face. Will, like many of the veteran campers, was used to bloody campers.

"How bad?" he asked. When Connor looked up at him, words weren't necessary. Will muttered a prayer of passage in ancient Greek and bowed his head.

"We need to make sure we don't cause a scene going down to the big house." I told him.

"Everyone should be at the camp fire right now." He said, consulting his watch.

"Good. C'mon, Chiron will want to know what happened as soon as possible." I said.

O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.

It was well after lights out before Chiron finally sent Annabeth and I out to our respective cabins for the night. We had been recounting the events of the evening and analyzing everything. I had a massive headache from the entire ordeal and my own personal guilt. I hadn't mentioned the black sword to anyone. I wanted to convince myself that it was just a shadow and that it was just plain old steel. I didn't want to believe that Nico could have done it. After all, the figure was tall for a fourteen year old, wasn't it?

"Percy, something's been bothering me since we found his body." Annabeth said in a whisper soft voice.

"What's wrong, babe?" I asked, tightening my arm around her shoulders.

"Well, when someone dies, the last emotion on their face remains, especially when it's murder. So, why did Travis look resolved and almost determined and not shocked or pained? It just seems suspicious. I don't like the lack of answers, Percy. It's unsettling." She kissed me lightly as we stopped outside her cabin.

"You aren't going to sleep tonight, are you?" I asked her, though I knew the answer. She shook her head and said good night, closing the door behind her. I turned back to go to my cabin, Annabeth's words racing around in my head and giving no peace to my headache. Annabeth's suspicions were almost never wrong, and I got the worst feeling that this time was no different.

The first thing I noticed when I walked into my cabin was that it was tidy, but not cleaned to the harpies' standards. Another bed had been added to the room, and it was occupied by a sleeping girl with a halo of black hair. It was fanned out on her pillow and the tangled mess of blankets made it clear that she tossed and turned as much as I did. I should've been more interested in the matter but at the time, I just wanted to sleep off the night's escapades. So, I pulled my shirt over my head and discarded it on the floor, praying to my father to give me a restful night. That, however, would've been against their ever complicated plans for my life.


	2. Princes, Pirates, and Ghosts Oh My!

I was sitting in a fireplace, somehow aware that this was the first out of body experience dream I'd had in a long time. I was staring out of the hearth into the big house living room. The room was dark but a single figure was pacing silently back and forth. The mist around him shifted from a man that looked strikingly like Luke in board shorts and golden curls, to a middle aged jogger with salt and pepper hair. Then he shifted to his godly form in a black robe. I assumed that this was in mourning of Travis' death.

"I'm sorry; he's as stubborn as you can be sometimes. He said he has no interest in seeing you." Hermes stopped and looked up as Chiron entered the room. Hermes clenched his fists in frustration and after a moment, sighed and sank into a high backed chair, defeated.

"It isn't as though he has much of a choice. Olympus is clamoring for what information Travis felt was enough to die for! We've become aware of something stirring. Poseidon has already made his concerns about Oceanus clear, and that should be at least enough to give pause. Now, Connor can mourn later. Right now, the information Travis gave him is more important than sorrow." There was a tortured and defeated look on Hermes' face that seemed to age him as he sat there. He was clearly distraught in the unrest of the immortal world and the loss of his son. I had to remind myself that my father wasn't the only god to love his children. Annabeth had even once told me that she couldn't imagine being immortal and invincible and be able to watch her own fragile children live and die. Hermes had lost Luke two years before, and now Travis.

"This is really more important to you than Travis and I?" Connor mumbled from the hall, "Then Luke really was the only son you loved." He looked worse than he had when Annabeth and I had left, and his voice was a hollow grieving echo of its former self. Hermes sighed at his son's berating words.

"I need to know what Travis told you before his death. What was he so determined to keep from Olympus that he took it to the grave with him? Connor, this is your duty to me, to Olympus." He stood and approached Connor who jerked away from his father's hand and stepped beyond him into the heart of the room.

"My duty to you is to keep pride to your name. My duty to Olympus is to protect her at all cost. I thought I'd done enough to make you proud. I never shamed your name, and I fought with Percy to the very end even against my own brother. Had I been in Percy's position, I would have taken his life. I know my duty! What is not my duty is to be Travis. We were two different people! Did it ever occur to you that Travis didn't always tell me everything, that maybe I don't have a clue what you're talking about? Whatever he wouldn't tell you, he sure as the Fates didn't tell me, okay? He took it to the grave with him, end of story." He sank into the chair his father had vacated, and put his head in his hands, "I'm so exhausted, and I know if I try to sleep, I'll have nightmares about him. I'm terrified to even fall asleep." Hermes put his hand gently on his son's head, stroking his blond hair. As he did so, the room fell into silence. The flames licked up around me and the room disappeared, the flames turning shades of purple and black.

The room beyond the flames looked dismal to say the least. It took a moment for me to recognize it through the diminishing flames, but finally I recognized the now empty throne of Hades. Heavy black stygian iron shackles bound a smoky figure to the throne. The ghostly man sat cross-legged in the air in a genie like sense. I might have found it comical if his situation wasn't so dismal. Nico strode out of the very shadows of the room, never breaking stride as he shifted from one place to the next. As much as I hated to admit it, Nico seemed to have mastered his father's gifts over the years. He'd grown since I'd last seen him that fateful summer. He was still thin, but instead of his gauntly features, there was a muted strength to his movements. He had the olive skin that was common of Mediterranean people, and the silky black curls to match. He was wearing black hiking boots and long black jeans, a gray T-shirt and a dusty double button coat. He had his stygian iron blade slung low on his narrow hips, gleaming perniciously in the dark flames. Just the sight of him made me itch to leap from my place in the hearth and make him suffer immense pain.

"Travis," Nico began, his voice much darker and richer than it had once been.

"We had a deal, Nico, a deal!" Travis gestured from his place by the throne. Nico pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed in a smooth tone. I knew he had gone to live with an uncle in Italy who had a large vineyard and a bad case of senile dementia. I guessed that his time speaking Italian must have changed the timbre of his voice. Before he could respond to Travis' outburst, however, his attention was turned to a hissing sound as black sand poured down into Hades' throne, building the god from the ground up. He regarded his son with mild disapproving. Nico clapped slowly and rolled his eyes.

"Dramatic entrance, dad, bravo! Straight tens for showmanship." He said sardonically. I noticed his heavy accent through his thick as butter cream voice and assumed that his senile old uncle probably didn't remember how to speak English.

"Ah, Nico, my sarcastic excuse of a son, I assume you've done as I asked?" Nico inclined his head at Travis' spirit bobbing up and down with a witty look on his face.

"One, Nico? There's supposed to be two! Twins Nico, I said twins! You knew this! Your sister would've done a better job." Hades smacked his forehead in distress.

"I couldn't get the other one, there were too many witnesses!" Nico growled in frustration, matching his father's fury. Hades stood and turned to Travis, clutching him by the misty after image of his camp shirt.

"What do you know? Tell me, or I swear by the sons of Des that you will wish you had." Travis laughed humorlessly.

"What can you do now? I'm already dead. Your mistake, bro." Travis shrugged nonchalantly as Hades released him and calmly turned on Nico.

"Here's a fantastic way to redeem yourself. Go get me the other one, alive. I'll torture the information out of him in front of this disgrace." He gestured behind him at Travis. Travis' face pleaded at Nico from over Hades' shoulder, but Nico showed no sign of remorse. He simply nodded curtly to his father and walked purposefully through the shadows of his father's throne and vanished.

A wave rushed in from behind me and washed me away from the scene, casting me ashore in the bright sunlight. I had sand in my mouth and quickly clambered to my feet on the shore of the strangest island I'd ever seen. There were rings of large houses that climbed the mountainous island. It seemed that the further they climbed, the older they got. Atop the large hill was a Greek temple like an acropolis.

"There he is!" I heard a boy yell. Two boys came running down the beach towards me, but they couldn't be looking at me. I looked around for another 'he', but I was alone on the beach. Could they see me? Was I really tangible in a dream? As they got closer, I could see what they looked like. One was dressed in Renaissance clothes, like the really rich heirs to fortunes. He was in rich blues and gold and greens. His hair was black and wavy like mine. The other boy looked a year or two older than him with the same long waves of black hair. He had on quarter length pants and dirty boots. He had a dirty pirate-like white shirt on with an open green vest over it. I mentally made a note of the knife strapped to his hip. When they got closer, I noticed that they had the same eyes, my eyes.

"And 'ere 'e is. Like she said," said the pirate boy, grabbing my wrist with a calloused hand. He pulled me along up the hill, talking to the other boy in his cockney accent. Was this a joke? And why could they see me?

They left me alone in a vast open temple. The room seemed to echo the sounds of the crashing waves meters below. A woman came into the room adorned in the gowns of the Greeks. Her black wavy hair was loosely piled on her head and she had a gold band in her hair. Those eyes that matched my own regarded me without pity, only a deep understanding that I didn't seem to understand myself.

"Perseus, little brother, the time has come for you to join us. Come to your family Perseus, make your Odyssey and come to us. Only here will you be safe from the coming trials. Here, you will be safe for all eternity."

"Annabeth?" I breathed, somehow knowing her answer already.

"No. Believe me, the loss will dissipate. You must come to us Perseus; it is our father's will. Perseus… Perseus…" I jolted awake, gasping for breath. Annabeth was sitting on my bead looking at me worriedly, her fingers in my hair. I was vaguely aware that she had been saying my name before.

"Percy, what did you see?" She always knew how to get straight to the point. Being a son of the big three, I often had crucially important dreams that almost always meant something. Before I could respond, my eyes fell on the huge round eyes of the little girl over Annabeth's shoulder. The same color eyes and long black braids. She was my little sister.


	3. What's a Thanatos?

The girl looked about five or six to me. One of her front teeth was missing and she was tiny. I must have scared her in my sleep, because after the initial shock wore off, she seemed a lot more enthusiastic about seeing me than I did her. Frankly, I was confused and a little betrayed. I wasn't the only child of my father's now, and it stung. I'd never even been a half sibling so something like this little girl sharing a cabin with me was more than I knew how to handle.

"H- Hey." I said, propping myself up on my elbow to look at her. She had on your basic camp shirt and blue jean shorts. She had on running shoes which I thought was a little strange for a five year old, but nothing to bizarre. She looked like your average first grader to me. Maybe she could have been distractingly cute, but lethal, I doubted. She waved back at me, her eyes falling to her shoes, but didn't say a word in return.

"Um, what's your name?" I asked, attempting to fill the weird silence. Annabeth stood up and walked to my dresser tossing me a clean camp shirt. I would have argued that the one on the floor was perfectly fine, but when I glanced down and saw that it was gone, I got a feeling Annabeth had done something with it.

"Hali," the girl said, glancing up as I pulled on the shirt Annabeth had tossed me. Annabeth laughed.

"That's ironic." Annabeth said. Hali blushed, "Oh no, I didn't mean anything bad. It's just that you're a daughter of Poseidon, and your name is Greek for Sea. That's all. It's just ironic." Annabeth reached out to comfort the girl but drew her hand back, thinking better of it. Hali shrugged.

"Yeah, I know. Why do you think I got the name? Mom's not stupid. It's just that I only have one brother. You have a hero's name, and live a hero's life. That's just so cool. It's like a self-fulfilling prophecy. Your name made you great, but my name has nothing to it. No history, no glory." Annabeth was staring at her, mouth agape. Hali looked up at her, her eyes shining.

"My mom's a Psychiatrist." She said, as though that answered everything.

"Maybe the name just isn't great yet. Maybe the Fates gave you that name for you to make it great." I told her, trying to make her feel better. I know it sounded corny, but six year olds love that, right? Well, she seemed to. She grinned from ear to ear and hugged me. She stepped back really quickly, not sure if I would be accepting of her actions. That was one of the terrible things about meeting some of your sibling years after they were born. You want to treat them like family but you don't know them well enough to do so. So, to reassure her, I smiled.

"You look like you're ready to go to breakfast. How about you head over and I'll meet you there. You won't have to eat alone this time." She nodded and ran from the room. I threw the covers off and went to grab my jeans on the floor, but they were gone. I looked up at Annabeth who was smiling at me.

"That was sweet, what you said to her. I'm sure that made her feel so much better about being the little sister of the Great Perseus Jackson. By the way, I kicked your clothes under your bed before Hali could see them covered in blood. They're keeping Travis' death under wraps until there is a ceremony at dinner. The only ones who know are the Hermes cabin, you and I, and Will and Jordan from Apollo. We all swore not to tell. I told Chiron that I'd keep you from letting it slip." She tossed me a pair of cargo shorts and I pulled them on. I kissed her good morning and just stood there holding her. Something about the last part of my dream had left me pretty shaken about fleeing to safety and leaving her behind. After just holding her close for a few silent moments, I had to ask.

"So, I suppose you want to know what I was dreaming." I said into her hair. She looked up at me.

"Absolutely, but not now. We have to go to breakfast, and you need to get to know your sister. You can tell me later." She kissed me again and we left for breakfast.

It was obvious to me that the Hermes table was pretending to be their normal selves through breakfast, but I guess no one else seemed to notice. Connor wasn't even there to comfort his siblings but I guess I could understand that he was in mourning. I tried to talk to Hali as much as possible to distract myself and it worked for a while. Talking to Hali wasn't like talking to most six year olds (I finally got her age from her.) Great, more smart girls in my life. That's what I needed.

Hali had been born in Hawaii, which I was extremely jealous of. Poseidon had come to her and her mom when she was four and explained everything to her, upholding our deal. I was glad he had, though I had to get used to having a sister now. Her mom had kept her from camp until this year, claiming she was too young at first. Hali immediately jumped on the idea of Annabeth and I coming back after summer ended to see Hawaii before school started again. I was almost feeling light and happy again. After all, I was hitting it off with my little sister, and I could also glance up across the pavilion and see Annabeth's long blond hair fall down her back. All good things must end, right? Well, mine did as Chiron stamped his hoof to quiet that pavilion. I had hoped that he would save the announcement for dinner, but no such luck. The look on Chiron's face was solemn and I saw the whole Hermes cabin tense at the silence.

"I must, regretfully, bring some tragic news to you all once again. We have lost a camper to malicious intent. Sadly, tonight we will hold a funeral for our own, Travis Stoll." A few of kids from the Hermes cabin were crying now, but it was Katie's look I couldn't stand to see. From the short glance I got, I could see her feelings written all over her face. She was mortified, broken.

"On a note of safety, I must demand that no camper on guard venture into the adjacent woods. Under no circumstances is this rule allowed to be over-looked. This is for the safety of everyone else. Whatever is out there has not been caught, and until it is, all capture the flag games are postponed as well." The Ares table seemed to groan as one collective heartless monster. I had to suppress a smile as Annabeth turned to them with her gray eyes all stormy. It seemed like the only Ares kid that had gotten the severity of the situation was Clarisse. I had a feeling that she had seen through Chiron's word play. Chiron had made it sound like there was a rouge monster in the woods. The reality was much worse, and I got the idea that Clarisse knew that. She and Annabeth shared one look, and then turned back to their respective tables.

The two of them hadn't really ever become friends, but there was a solid understanding between them. They both had the same things to protect, I think. They had their reputations, the power of the gods of Olympus, their siblings, and their men. Yeah, I said it. I will be the first to admit that without Annabeth, I'd never have survived against Kronos. I had a drive to protect Annabeth, and I know she had the same drive to protect me. So, in a way, Annabeth and Clarisse had reached a common ground.

"Now, though I know this information weighs heavy on your hearts and minds, I hope that you will go about your training for the day. We need to be able to protect ourselves if this thing should venture out and go on the offensive. We cannot lose anyone else." With that, Chiron turned and left the pavilion. Immediately, the chatter rose. At some point, I caught an Ares cabin boy saying, "Spartans, ready your breakfast, and eat hearty, for tonight, we dine in Hell!" and a couple of his brothers and sisters laughing. I was about to get up and shove his head in a toilet, (it worked on Clarisse eventually), but before I could, Clarisse stood from the table and handled her counselor duties herself. A loud _smack!_ Echoed off the columns of the pavilion, and the people fell silent. Clarisse dropped her hand, but there was a dark read mark on the guy's face from the contact. Clarisse leaned down towards him in a threatening manner.

"I know that your thick skull will have some trouble with this, Nick, but try to grasp how serious this is. Travis Stoll is dead, Nick, DEAD! You didn't know him but some of us here fought with Travis. Some of us have shed blood, sweat, and tears with Travis! So, in no way, am I going to let you be the idiot that disrespects the dead." Clarisse turned away from him and walked towards me of all people.

"We need to talk, Jackson," she said as she strode past me. When I got up to follow her, I saw the last thing I wanted to see, or at least the last person I wanted to see. Sitting up on a column was none other than Nico Di Angelo. I don't know how I didn't notice him before, but now every part of my body was screaming to rip him down from that pillar and tear him to shreds. I got a sick satisfaction in the fact that Connor had stayed in the Big House rather than coming to breakfast. After all, I would bet ever drachma I had that that's why Nico was up there. He was watching for Connor, and waiting to strike. I had once trusted Nico like a brother, and yet now he was my enemy.

"Nico!" I yelled. Forget about making a scene, I didn't care at that point. He stood in one fluid motion, and I saw that there was suddenly another figure on a pillar at the other end of the pavilion. It was a man. He was tall and thin in all white except for the black assassin's gloves on his hands. Even his pin straight hair was salt white. Nico jumped down, (no I'm serious, and he even landed on his feet. What in Hades?) And stood fully exposed. He didn't even draw his sword. I should've taken that as a sign to not be stupid, as Annabeth would have put it, but I was furious. So, naturally, I ran straight at him, Riptide drawn. Before I knew it, I was on the ground with a harsh pain in my side. I heard a young man's voice yell, "Don't kill him!" It was Nico's voice. I sat up painfully and noticed that the white clad man had somehow intercepted me. He was staring at the water in the distance, I thought. No, he was staring at nothing. Those eyes were silver as the moon, but lifeless. He was blind. Nevertheless, Nico was glaring at him perniciously.

"Are you insane? I swear on my father's name…" He trailed off as he approached me cautiously.

"Percy, are you hurt?" Annabeth asked. I held out my hand to Nico to help me up. Nico scoffed and crossed his arms over his chest. I noticed that he, too, wore the assassin's gloves like his bodyguard. His eye roll told me that he hadn't fallen for it. I'll give him credit; he was smarter than I thought he was.

"Percy, I'm the one that took you to the River Styx. I'm not going to forget that you can't be hurt. I'm not an idiot. I know you were probably going to pull me down and get a knife between my shoulder blades." Annabeth looked between the two of us for a moment, and then realization came to her, her typical light bulb moment face.

"This has to do with your dream, doesn't it?" I nodded and got to my feet. Nico was my height now, which was weird to say the least. He gave me a serious look.

"We need to talk. I can explain everything."

"No need, Nico, I already saw your assignment from your father."

"Of course you did, Percy, who do you think brought you there to see it? I was hoping that you would catch Travis and I's conversation but my father knows exactly when to interrupt. Please let me explain, then you can lock me up or whatever you had in mind." He smirked as though he knew that I had had no plan in mind.

We walked down to the beach as an extremely mismatched array of marauders. Annabeth and I in our camp gear, Nico in his full black with a three foot sword at his hip, and the weirdly silent blind bodyguard. The people of the pavilion watched with mouths agape. It's not like they had heard what we said after all.

"First things first, Nico, who is this?" I pointed to the blind man that easily stood a foot over my five foot six. Nico looked back at the man and nonchalantly replied, "This is Thanatos," with a graceful shrug of his shoulders.


	4. Prophecy and Pomegranates

Thanatos, it turned out, was a minor god I had never heard of before. Annabeth knew, go figure, and gasped as soon as Nico said his name. I stuck out my hand to shake hands with him, but Annabeth snatched my hand away before Thanatos had a chance.

"What? I was just being polite. Aren't you always telling me to be polite to superiors? He is a god." I said, looking at her. She had the nerve to look at me as though I were the idiot. Nico laughed.

"Its okay, Annabeth. What did you think the gloves were, a fashion statement? No, as long as he's wearing those, you're safe." I saw Annabeth breathe a sigh of relief. I was so confused.

"Wait, safe from what?" Nico grinned like this was his favorite part of the job.

"Thanatos is the god of death. He handles the books for the Fates. He also does the dirty work."

"I'm the one that drops the pianos." Thanatos said. His voice was soft as the wind and I swear that I could see his breath even in the heat of a summer day. He flashed a crooked smile and we all caught sight of a wicked row of pointed teeth. I felt an involuntary shiver run down my spine.

We walked in silence for a few minutes, trudging down the beach towards the cliff-side cave of the Oracle. I couldn't really tell you why we were heading there. Nico just seemed to naturally walk that way. Thanatos always followed Nico's movements, like an inverted shadow. He didn't make a sound as he walked, and I had to wonder if I had shaken his hand, would he have even had a hand to shake?

"What happened in your dream, Percy?" Annabeth asked over the sounds of the waves crashing through the rocks. I sighed and ran my fingers through my hair.

"It's a long story."

"We've got time." Nico responded, tossing a pomegranate back and forth in his hands idly. I didn't remember him having a pomegranate before, but I guess it didn't really matter. As I talked through the first part of my dream involving Connor and Hermes, Annabeth's eyes became more calculating, and Nico's face darkened. After I finished explaining that part, I looked at Nico.

"That's when I was dragged into the Underworld. I guess that you put me in both places?" Nico shook his head.

"No, I only called you to the Underworld. I take it that this is my turn to explain?" He asked, never taking his eyes off the bright red pomegranate. Before he could start, Rachel came running out of her abode towards us. I guess a running oracle jump starts the hero reaction, but I wrapped one hand around Riptide and the other around Annabeth's hand. To both of our shock, she jumped at Nico and wrapped her arms around his neck. He caught her then put her down gingerly, the pomegranate never leaving his hand. She then proceeded to give Annabeth and me a hug, though her enthusiasm was much less than it was before.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to catch you guys off guard. I couldn't believe my senses when I felt that Nico was with you guys." She turned to him with her arms crossed. I guessed that sensing people was an oracle thing.

"When did anyone say you were allowed to get that tall? Oh, by the way, you owe me like, seventy- two hours worth of bad horror movies and pop-corn fights, DiAngelo. Hey Thanatos. I see you're back on guard duty." Nico scoffed.

"He's not a bodyguard, and you know that." Nico responded.

"Oh, right. I forgot that you just get weirder and weirder as the days progress." Nico crossed his arms over his chest and blew a lock of black curls out of his eyes. He muttered something about hypocritical cave dwellers, but let the argument drop. I'd forgotten that the two of them had become the most unlikely of friends over the last couple of years. It had all started when Rachel had to do a project on the ages of film. Nico was always for a good movie taunting and Rachel didn't want to sit in the dark watching movies by herself. From then on, the two of them just clicked. No wonder Nico's feet just automatically made their way here.

"So, I hate to interrupt the reunion, but you owe me a damn good explanation for what you did to Travis." I said, remembering that I was supposed to be angry. Rachel's face was hard to read, and I got the strangest feeling that she knew more than the rest of us. Annabeth looked at Nico with disbelief.

"Nico, tell me he isn't talking about what I think he is." Annabeth asked quietly. Nico sighed.

"If I did, I'd be lying. Yes, I did kill Travis, but hear me out!" He threw his arms up as I lunged at him. Annabeth held me back as Thanatos got between the both of us. Rachel laughed.

"Not a bodyguard, sure Nico." Thanatos turned on her, and without warning, his eyes turned a rich purple. I don't mean like a human's eyes where the iris is the color. No, his eyes looked like they'd been replaced by amethysts with black holes drilled into the center. Did I ever mention that gods were weird? Well, they are. He looked her in the eyes with a sarcastic look.

"Do you know how much trouble I would be in if Hades found out that Nico got hurt? I do this for my own safety, not his." Rachel laughed.

"Can we get back to the explanation, please?" Annabeth demanded, "This is a serious matter." Nico took a deep breath and huffed, leaning against the cave wall.

"Okay. This whole thing with Travis was a deal. I didn't want to do it, but I had no other choice. My father knows that there is something stirring. He hasn't told me anything yet. I'm not even sure if he knows. By what you said, Percy, I'd doubt that any of the gods really knows. So, whatever they don't know, they all seem to think that Travis does.

"When I was told to bring Travis to my father… Well, you remember, Rachel." Nico nodded in her direction. She bit her finger nail, but took a breath and began speaking anyway.

"Yeah, I remember. You wouldn't sit down at all. You just kept pacing around and stressing." She tugged absently at a long red curl and her eyes locked with Nico's. After a moment, Nico looked back at us.

"I decided to go to Travis. I explained everything to him. He seemed to understand my situation, so he decided that we should stage his murder in a way." Annabeth took a breath and I felt her hand tighten in mine.

"So, Travis isn't really dead?" She sounded like it was too much to hope, which it was. Nico shook his head.

"No, he is. We staged a murder not the death part. He said that people like Percy and I weren't as expendable as he was, and that I needed to avoid dad's wrath to keep an ally. It made sense, but I still felt terrible for killing him." He pulled a small stygian iron dagger out of its sheath on his upper arm and sliced into the pomegranate. It made a sick sort of gruesome sound as he did so. He handed half to Thanatos who'd been silent as Nico told his story. His eyes, thankfully, had gone back to normal as well. Nico wiped the blade off on his jeans and sheathed it again. He pulled a cluster of ruby seeds out of their alcove and popped them in his mouth. I got the strange feeling that the pomegranate was from the gardens of the Underworld. The silence drove on for what felt like forever. What was odd was how natural and comfortable the silence felt after a conversation like that. I could feel the sea breeze rushing around me. The sound of the ocean against the rocks was as steady as a heartbeat. Every few moments Nico would spit a few bare seeds into the sand. Thanatos had eaten his portion in a few bites, taking huge chunks out at once and barely chewing before swallowing it, husk and all. It seemed like the only ones not basking in the momentary calm were Rachel and Annabeth. Annabeth chewed her lip and sketched out random floor plans in the sand while Rachel tugged nervously on the same lock of curls. I noticed that her eyes would cut to Nico from time to time, concern written in them. Nico noticed after a while and inclined his head towards her.

"What's wrong, Red?" He asked in a quiet voice. Well, quieter anyway. Nico was always soft spoken, like he was always in a funeral home. Honestly, I barely heard the conversation they had. Rachel was facing away from me, so, naturally, I didn't get a word she said.

"No… Not necessarily… I'll try, you know me." Nico's words didn't mean a lot to me but the conversation seemed pretty private. I turned to Annabeth who was putting the finishing touches on a scale model sketch of a Greek temple. As I watched her focus intently, my fingers playing idly in her hair, my memory finally came to its senses.

"Nico, what about Connor?" I asked. It had suddenly hit me that in my dream the night before, Hades had assigned Nico to bring him Connor. Was it possible that Nico was playing a double agent? I found myself, once again, not wanting to believe it. I had trusted Nico, and it was hard not to start trusting him again. Annabeth looked up when I said this.

"What about Connor?" She asked, looking between Nico and me. Nico sighed and pushed himself off the cliff face.

"My father expects me to bring him Connor alive," He ran his gloved fingers through his hair in frustration; "I can't do this. Just one almost got my ass kicked by Percy. By the way, great job making the biggest scene ever, bro. Now, even if I managed to work out something with Connor, everyone would assume it was me. I can barely stand having one person's blood on my hands. I'm just going to have to face my father." Rachel's concerned eyes were turned on him as though she should be able to protect him. I guess Rachel will always see Nico like a child or little brother. Well, then again, was that the look of concern for a little brother? Annabeth's face, however, was calculating. I had to admit, one of the many reasons I fell in love with that girl was her little sub-conscious habits. There was something about the way those gray eyes would brighten as she got an idea, or the way she would bite her bottom lip as she considered the many possibilities. I could easily watch her forever.

"Well, I think we could figure something out that would work out for the both of you. First things first though, we have to tell Connor the truth." Nico looked at Annabeth like she was insane, but when he spoke; his voice was calm and controlled again.

"Annabeth, you saw how Percy reacted. We used to be friends and Travis wasn't even his brother. Connor was nowhere near as close to me as a friend, and Travis was his brother. He won't even listen to a word we say."

"That isn't exactly true," Annabeth responded, "Connor is more stricken with grief now than anything. I don't think he'd have the energy or the motivation to hurt you." Nico was shaking his head the whole time Annabeth was talking.

"No, you can't really fathom the fury and strength that grief can give a person. Percy, you probably remember when I lost Bianca. I didn't even know I had any kind of power and yet I was able to open a hole to the Underworld." Annabeth's face was thoughtful again.

"Well, you were kind of a special case too. I mean, I think you've made it pretty clear that you are the most 'gifted' son of Hades in centuries. I see what you're saying though. Maybe we have to convince Connor that Travis told you what he knew. You'd be practically untouchable then."

"Wouldn't work," Nico said, "then the gods would get word. If my father had any hint that I knew what information Travis had, it would make this whole thing pointless." Rachel, who'd been staring down at her toes in the sand, suddenly looked up.

"What if you brought Connor here? What if I gave him a fake prophecy that involved Nico? Then, he couldn't hurt Nico, and he might be willing to work out a plan." Annabeth's eyes lit up so bright, I swear the world lightened up a bit.

"That's perfect! Percy, we'll have to bring Connor here tonight."

"After the burning?" I asked. She nodded.

"We should probably get back. I don't know what you had scheduled today, but I've already missed ancient Greek for the day." I laughed.

"Yeah, like you still need to take ancient Greek. I'm the one that still has trouble with some of it." She gave me a sarcastic look, and then smiled.

"This is true. C'mon, we should get back to camp. We'll bring Connor back here tonight. Nico?" Annabeth turned to him, no doubt wondering if he was technically back at camp again. He shrugged and looked over his shoulder at Rachel.

"Nah, I have lots of bad movies to make up for. See you guys tonight." Annabeth nodded.

"You guys should come to Travis's burning though, especially you Nico. I think you owe him at least that much." Nico nodded. We started walking away. I snuck a glance behind me and saw Nico pull Rachel into a real hug as all three of them walked into the cave of the oracle. Yeah, definitely not a little brother anymore.

**A/N: Okay, so I thought that maybe this chapter got a little dull in the middle but it revealed a bit of character psychology. I think the chapter itself cleared up some of the story line. I'm not amazingly proud of it but it got the job done. Just to clear up something in advance; Yes, I get that Rachel has laws of the Oracle on her, I know. That was just for anyone who was freaking out over the last couple of lines. **


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